A Pearl
by Humanyubel
Summary: "It's just that I fell in love with a war And nobody told me it ended" None of the nervous energy that coursed through Daisuke seemed to exist within Takeru. The TV's pixelated lights made Takeru's eyes an unearthly blue. Repost from my AO3. Daikeru. Old draft I finished finally. Inspired by Mitski


Daisuke let his eyes flutter shut against the warm rays of sunlight, his skin felt like a jar left out on a summer afternoon. His body stretched out along the sand, cat like. Everything was warm, so very, very warm.

He could nearly taste the gentle push and pull of the waves to his left, the roar of the ocean distant and peaceful. Salt filled his mouth, and he breathed out along with it.

The breeze hit him from two separate directions, the forest with its lush green trees, and the ocean with its bitter brine.

To his left he heard Takeru clear his throat and the relaxing atmosphere's shattered. The world around him coming back into perspective.

The sand fades and in its place Daisuke's greeted with the coarse material of his bedroom carpet against his sweaty back. His clothes are sticking to him in the most uncomfortable way, maroon tank top twisted around him. His soccer shorts feel too heavy for the current weather and ride up his legs.

He smacks his lips and sweat rolls down his face and into his mouth. He frowns to himself. Gross.

The TV's nothing but static, a faint buzzing that fills his head with memories of life altering danger. The overhead light, two bulbs already out and the TV are the only sources of light in the room, and even then it all feels like it's adding unnecessary heat to the room.

It was positively sweltering.

DemiVeemon and Tokomon had both managed to squeeze into the freezer together to escape the heat. Daisuke envies them for a moment before a rush of relief hits him that they're both escaping the heat and not lonely.

His eyes flicker over to where Takeru sits cross legged on his bed, the picture of tranquility despite the high flush on his cheeks and the sweat dripping down his neck. He sipped at his water, his book long since abandoned at his side.

Maybe the weather wasn't the only thing contributing to the stifling atmosphere in his room. He turns his back to Takeru and sits up, pushing his bangs out of his forehead. They stick up, sweat slicked.

If he were to look at the other boy he wouldn't be able to deny the cause of the splotchy blush spreading down his neck.

Takeru's in his bed and it's embarrassing in a way he's not willing to elaborate on. Not even within the confines of his own head.

It was infinitely bizarre compared to Ken just lounging around his bed in his pajamas. Ken would kick him out of bed if Daisuke crowded him and sprawl out, limbs arranged like a starfish. Ken didn't feel out of place cohabiting with Daisuke. The boy, as cheesy as it was, was as he'd proclaimed so boldly as a preteen, his other half.

"Did it work?" Takeru's voice is unexpected, though he should've known better.

"Did what work?" his mind scrambles for an answer to Takeru's question but he turns up blank.

" Daisuke ," Takeru's voice takes on a fond tone, blue eyes soft. "You said you were going to try and envision the digital world. Did it work?"

"Oh," Daisuke says numbly.

"Uh, yeah. Yeah it did. It was really nice until I broke out of it."

"Sorry." Takeru passes him his half drank water bottle and Daisuke does his best not to think too hard on what the girls talked about when they thought no one was listening.

His lifts it to his lips, feels something in him shake, and finishes the other half in two gulps. An indirect kiss .

He can feel Takeru's eyes on him as he stands to turn off the lights, the fuzzy glow of the TV now the only lighting. He lingers near the door but scolds himself.

His parents words to Jun running through his head in an unstoppable loop.

"Always leave the bedroom door open when a boy's over. Always leave the bedroom door open when a boy's over. Always leave the bedroom door open. When a boy's over. Never-"

They'd never once placed similar restrictions on him.

It felt more private to exist in the room with Takeru when the door was firmly shut behind him. There wasn't an escape route without causing offense. DemiVeemon and Tokomon weren't with them to disrupt the unspoken tension.

Anxiety crawled down his spine like spider legs. Takeru kindly didn't bring attention to the way he lingered by the door.

He plops back onto his spot on the floor and stares listlessly at the TV.

"You know, you should try meditation with me sometime. It's... nice."

Hikari and Iori had dragged him into meditation not long after the final fight with Vamdemon. They claimed it helped them and he was willing to try just about anything once. Especially if it made his friends happy.

It always managed to soothe him and bring him back into the moment. And with even more practice he could envision the Digital World as a living experience in real time. Hikari confided that she also could, but for her it was more as a way to cope with the events of her childhood, for him it was a momentary escape.

"...Maybe." Takeru says, just as he always did. "It's nice just watching you and Hikari chan zone out and come out of it refreshed.

"I wouldn't know."

Takeru pulls his knees up to his chest and leans his back against Daisuke's wall.

He seems to deliberate on something with himself and then he's breaking their companionable, albeit tense, silence.

"Did you hear Iori received his first kiss from a girl one year his junior?"

"No way." Daisuke says. He's envious of Iori for only a brief second before his feelings are replaced by happiness for his younger friend.

"Yes. He's quite the charmer in his year. But still, it's kind of embarrassing to have someone younger than you get their first kiss before you." Takeru laughs, head rolling lazily into his shoulder. His sweat soaked hair's the color of the fine sand on the Digital World's beaches.

Daisuke stares.

"You haven't had your first kiss yet?"

"Nobody I've been interested in has been free. I want mine to matter." There's an intensity in Takeru's eyes, despite the bright smile on his face. "You? You've probably gotten a kiss from one of your many admirers."

Daisuke flushes. He hadn't noticed anyone so much as looking his way with more than brief, passing interest. There was no way he had a hoard of admirers as Takeru insisted.

"What admirers?" he scoffs.

Takeru doesn't answer him.

"You've… had your first kiss, right? You have your pick of just about anyone." He opens his mouth to ask just who- what was Takeru even talking about.

"I've… I've never kissed anyone before either." He admits.

Takeru laughed, boyish and painfully mischievous

"Come on. There's no way! You liked Hikari chan plenty- you were really passionate for an eleven year old- surely someone would appreciate that directed their way."

Maybe one of his many admirers Takeru insisted he had.

"Well I've… there was one time I almost."

Takeru's head tilted, the perfect look of curiosity upon his fair face. And Daisuke quashes down the longing in him.

"Come on you can tell me. We're friends- none of that weird rivalry junk."

"It was like four years ago and even if we did kiss it wouldn't have counted."

His fists tighten, white knuckled at his sides.

Takeru's still laughing like watching Daisuke's face turn red is his favorite pastime.

"Just say it, it can't be that bad. Unless you had an illicit affair with a di-" Daisuke leapt to his feet, eyes flashing.

"It was Ken okay?! I almost kissed Ken when we were thirteen! But we were both scared and his Mom knocked really loudly on his door before we could even…" he expelled the confession in a single breath, his rambling on an incurable plague upon his house.

The apartment's nearly silent following his outburst.

The ragged sound of his own breathing fills his ears. He's mortified, ready to join DemiVeemon and Tokomon in the freezer. Or find a nice hole to lay in until the storm blows over.

"Oh."

Yeah oh.

The unasked "you're kidding,right?" stung.

Daisuke nodded, face flushing in the low lighting. His bedroom felt too small for the feelings that wanted to burst forth from his ribcage. Not for the first time he felt claustrophobic in his own home.

Takeru turned fully to him, one foot planted on the old carpet. His opposite leg curled towards himself, lax.

Takeru scoots to the edge of the bed, one leg curled up towards himself and the other extended to the ground, foot flat against the carpet. His curious eyes fixed unflinchingly on him. Like the knowledge that he'd almost kissed a boy in their friend group wasn't shocking.

He knows, among the older group there'd been whispers and suspicion, but Taichi had put an end to it entirely. Though none of it was done with ill intentions- it still left him anxious. He'll always be thankful to Taichi for that, really.

He didn't have to come out until he was ready with it like that.

Daisuke's face flushes hotter as he fights back tears.

None of the nervous energy that coursed through Daisuke seemed to exist within Takeru.

The TV's pixelated lights made Takeru's eyes an unearthly blue.

"Want to change that?"

Daisuke swallowed around the lump in his throat.

"Don't tease me like that."

"Who said anything about teasing you?" Takeru leans forward far enough to take Daisuke's wrist in his hand. He's just as sweaty as Daisuke is, maybe he's even just as nervous as he is. Or maybe that's just wishful thinking.

He doesn't apply any pressure, simply holding him. He doesn't pull insistently at Daisuke. Doesn't look like he expects anything else other than to be able to comfort Daisuke.

Daisuke can feel his pulse in his throat. Booming like thunder overhead.

He doesn't know what weird parallel world he's managed to land in that justifies someone else granting him permission to sit on his own bed, but he doesn't want to think too hard about it lest he shatters the moment.

Both of Takeru's feet are on the floor now, and his upper body twists just the slightest to face him.

He sits on the edge of the bed, his knees knocking into Takeru's but the other boy doesn't so much as flinch at the contact.

He doesn't realize he's shaking until Takeru starts to rubs circles into his bare forearm.

"Sorry." he breathes out, mortified at his reactions.

Takeru shushes him, smile small and tender.

Takeru leans into his personal space, face inches from his. His warm breath fanning out along Daisuke's face ignites a fire in his gut.

He's dizzy with want when Takeru pulls away, eyes half lidded.

"Do over." he breathes just shy of against Daisuke's mouth.

"Wh-"

"Your eyes were open."

Daisuke blinks owlishly, at the other boy. Mentally debating whether he should run out of his own apartment or kiss Takeru again.

Takeru's pressing his thumb lightly against his bottom lip snaps him out of his internal debate. Unthinkingly his tongue darts out to taste salt. Takeru's pupils are dilated and Daisuke's blown away by how unobservant he's been.

" Focus on me. "

And then they're kissing again, and Daisuke can't tell when Takeru withdraws his thumb, not that he cares. Because this, this is all he's wanted since he was twelve and didn't know it was okay to find his gaze landing on boys just as often as it did girls. All he's wanted since he knew it was a want.

And it was with Takeru . Smart, funny, caring, Takeru. Takaishi Takeru, who up until this point, Daisuke was sure was 100% straight.

There's tongue and Daisuke melts into the contact, unable to believe this is really happening.

He pulls back enough to mumble into Daisuke's cheek.

"You don't know how long I've wanted to do that…" he peppers kisses all along Daisuke's face and places a gentle kiss to the shell of Daisuke's ear. His breath against Daisuke's ear sounds like the sea.

Daisuke shivers.

"What do you mean?" he refuses to get his hopes up. He doesn't know if he'll ever recover from the heart break.

"It means I like you."

Daisuke's brain short circuits.

"How?"

"Well," Takeru begins, pressing his lips into Daisuke's sweaty hair. "Your unending kindness, the way you defuse a situation with your corny jokes, your emotional intelligence, the way you're so gentle with Veemon…" Takeru runs a warm hand up and down Daisuke's back. Each time he touches bare skin, Daisuke twitches without fail.

He continues speaking, and Daisuke can't see his face any. Just warm skin and blond hair. With a start he realizes Takeru's doing it for his benefit.

"I like your laugh, the way you talk, I like your legs, I like your dark brown eyes, and your darker skin. I love the way you laugh, it's my favorite sound. I like that when you invite me over you don't hesitate to let me take your bed…"

Takeru pauses, composing himself.

"Tell me, Daisuke… Have you noticed me too?" Daisuke can't find his voice so he nods, trembling hand reaching blindly for Takeru's. Takeru takes his hand and it's like finally coming home.

Takeru's face comes into view again and this time Daisuke knows it's okay to want. And he wants, so very desperately. His stomach a mess of nerves and unrelenting fire.

He presses a peck against Takeru's lips, chaste. When Takeru doesn't shy away, Daisuke grows bolder and presses another kiss to his lips.

It was heaven. Daisuke's sure of it. And maybe it's ironic, that after all these years, Takeru's Digimon partner fits him. He recontextualizes the connection and it feels right. This feels right, and all the shameful nights of pinning for his friend fade away to distant memories.

He presses a palm to Takeru's chest, and his heart's racing just as fast as Daisuke's own. He could nearly cry with the sheer force of relief flooding his system.

His free hand cautiously rests against Takeru's hip, and he hums into the kiss.

Takeru's own hands find place tangled in Daisuke's hair and the exposed skin of his thigh right above his knee. Everywhere Takeru touches him burns, a pleasant sensation despite the weather.

They separate a final time and Daisuke's the first so speak.

"I really like you, Takeru." he confesses, certain the other boy could tell, but wanting no questions up in the air.

"I really, really like you, Daisuke." They rest their foreheads together and enjoy the moment.

The world around them might as well not exist.

Daisuke licks his lips and tastes a mixture of salt and Takeru's chap stick. He tastes just like the ocean. His heart rate evened out.


End file.
